9-Night E. Caribbean Cruise from Norfolk Port Highlights - San Juan, Puerto Rico

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San Juan, Puerto Rico
The largest and best-preserved complex of Spanish colonial architecture in the Caribbean, Old San Juan (founded in 1521) is the oldest capital city under the U.S. flag. Once a lynchpin of Spanish dominance in the Caribbean, it has three major fortresses, miles of solidly built stone ramparts, a charming collection of antique buildings, and a modern business center. The city's economy is the most stable and solid in all of Latin America.

The Port of San Juan is the busiest ocean terminal in the West Indies, with an estimated half of the Caribbean's trade passing through here. There are about 710 cruise-ship arrivals every year, bringing some 850,000 passengers.

Shopping:
Puerto Rico is a shopaholic's dream, with designer boutiques, discounted retail outlets and numerous traditional crafts on offer. Traditional Puerto Rican crafts to look out for include the wooden figures of Christian saints and religious stories (santos); intricate, handmade lace (mundillo) and the dramatic island masks made from papier mache or coconut shells.

Places to Go:
There is no hipper venue in San Juan today than the Museo de Arte . It took $55 million to turn this 1920s city hospital in Santurce, an eyesore for decades, into this new home for art. The new museum has become a way of life for some Puerto Ricans, many of whom go here at least once a week -- perhaps to see a production in the 400-seat theater, named for Raúl Juliá, the late Puerto Rican actor, or perhaps to go for a romantic stroll through the museum's 5-acre (2-hectare) garden. Many chic trendsetters return at night for a nuevo criolla meal at Pikayo.

The emerging neighborhood for the chic set is called SoFo, a sector that lies south of Calle Fortaleza in Old Town. This place is becoming so trendy that it is the first of the Old San Juan neighborhoods to be awarded its own acronym, no doubt inspired by New York's SoHo. The Parrot Club is the hot spot of the neighborhood, quickly rivaled by Trois Cent Onze.

To mix with the locals, head for the Mercado de Río Piedras (Paseo José de Diego), with its 4 blocks of shops and cheap restaurants. (You can reach this area by taxi). This vast outdoor mall is scented with everything from recently caught fish to just-picked citrus. When Sanjuaneros want to buy anything, they head here. Open from early morning to late evening (but not on Sunday), these stores and markets provide a whiff of local life that's unseen anywhere else in San Juan.

Or, head for the boardwalk at Parque Lineal Marti Coli, which stretches along Caño de Martín Peña, from Hato Rey to Parque Central.

Later you can head for Rumba to dance to the sounds of salsa and a bomba with an African beat.